Grand Canyon National Park Seeks Public Comment on Environmental Assessment for North Rim Emergency Services/Wildland Fire Facility and Preservation Treatments of Exposed Frame Cabins

Grand Canyon National Park Superintendent Joseph F. Alston today announced the release of an Environmental Assessment (EA) titled North Rim Emergency Services/Wildland Fire Facility and Preservation Treatments of Exposed Frame Cabins. The EA outlines the National Park Service's (NPS) proposal to construct an emergency services/wildland fire facility, replace an existing kiosk and storage building at the helibase, and to preserve historic exposed frame cabins on the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park. The National Park Service (NPS) is soliciting comments from the public on the proposal.

The EA considers four alternatives, Alternative A: a no-action alternative, and three action alternatives: Alternatives B, C and D. Alternative B, the agency preferred alternative, proposes to construct the new emergency services/wildland fire facility adjacent to the existing water storage tanks in the administrative area of Bright Angel peninsula. The facility would occupy approximately 10,590 square feet and would house both emergency medical service (EMS) and wildland fire operations. The facility would include storage areas for emergency services, equipment caches, office space, a conference room, maintenance areas, and holding cells. Construction of the facility and associated parking would result in approximately two acres of ground disturbance (some of which has been previously disturbed) and tree removal. This new facility is needed to consolidate those operations that are currently housed in separate facilities. Existing facilities are old (dating back to the 1930's), they were not designed for modern equipment and they are inadequately ventilated, violating National Fire Protection Act standards. The new facility would allow for improved emergency response time and address the inadequacies present in the existing facilities.

The preferred alternative also includes the removal of a kiosk and associated storage building at the existing helibase. These buildings would be replaced with a single 200-square- foot building adjacent to the helipad. The new building would accommodate office space and equipment storage. The project site has been previously disturbed and no vegetation would be removed during construction.

The exposed frame cabins are located in the North Rim Inn and Campground Historic District, near the North Rim campground. These buildings were constructed around 1929 and were remodeled in the 1930s and 1960s. There are 26 one-room cabins, a shower facility, and a laundry facility. These buildings were last used in 1989 and have not been maintained since then. As part of the preferred alternative, all 28 buildings would be restored, rehabilitated or reconstructed. The extent of efforts necessary to make the buildings functional would vary, depending on the existing condition of each cabin. Treatment of these cabins would provide much-needed seasonal fire crew housing on the North Rim. During the early spring and late fall months, the ability to accomplish wildland fire projects is limited by the housing that is available. The lack of housing has restrained the wildland fire effort on the North Rim and has affected employee retention and the ability of the Park to recruit new employees.

Copies of the EA can be obtained by writing to the Superintendent, Grand Canyon National Park, P.O. Box 129, Grand Canyon, Arizona 86023, Attn: Sara White, Environmental Compliance Officer, or on-line at www.nps.gov/grca/compliance/. Comments will be accepted for 30 days and should be sent to Sara White at the above address by March 21, 2003. For questions or additional information, please contact Debbie Lutch, project compliance lead, at 928-774-0095.